Bretton Woods, New Hampshire

June 9th - 12th, 2019

An Annual Affair

The Bretton Woods Experience

This June, Consumers' Research will host its 5th annual meeting of the minds at Bretton Woods. Over the last four years, Consumers' Research has brought together experts, regulators, and policymakers to tackle and demystify contemporary consumer challenges and opportunities in the financial services industry. This year's summit will examine how innovation, emerging technology, and evolving business models affect the legal and regulatory consumer protection landscape, which consequently affects consumer welfare. Participants will also explore the challenges facing regulators tasked with fostering technological innovation while preventing consumer harm.

Even before the operation of a new law, much can be done by consumer pressure.

— F. J. Schlink, Founder, Consumers' Research (1929)

Schedule of Events

Workshop

The goal of the summit is to bring together experts in their respective fields to discuss and debate the merits, shortcomings, assumptions, and frameworks we use to asses, administer, and ensure consumer protection and consumer welfare in the U.S. Our aim is for participants to mutually challenge each other's perspectives on what is in the best interest of consumers and collaboratively develop new, informed frameworks around which to understand and address consumer protection and well-being.

Below is a sampling of panel and working group topics. The event is conducted under Chatham House Rules, so none of the workshop conversations are attributable to participants, but they are critical for framing the output Consumers' Research will develop after the summit.

Tom Miller, Jr., Jack R. Lee Chair in Financial Institutions and Consumer Finance at Mississippi State University & Senior Affiliated Scholar at The Mercatus Center at George Mason University

Srikanth Sarasam, The World Bank

Yoshiyuki Yamamoto, United Nations Operations (UNOPS)

Preeta Bansal, MIT Media Lab

Sandra Ro, UWINCorp

Jacqueline Karlin, Amazon Lending

Andrew Hinkes, Berger Singerman LLP

Lance Koonce, Davis Wright Tremaine LLP

Berin Szoka, Techfreedom

Jared Marx, Harris, Wiltshire & Grannis LLP

Berin Szoka, TechFreedom

Carol Van Cleef, Baker Hostetler, LLP

Paige Peterson, Zcash

Perianne Boring, Chamber of Digital Commerce

Alicia Carmona, Identity 2020

Patrick Deegan, Open Mustard Seed & Personal BlackBox

Priya Samra, Chamber of Digital Commerce

Victoria Adams, Booz Allen Hamilton

Michael Gronager, Chainalysis

Chris Groshong, CoinStructive

News

Publications & Press

While the summit operates under Chatham House rules, each year we produce a paper or framework developed out of our collective learning to be shared as a tool for relevant stakeholders.

CONSUMERS' RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS BENEFITS OF BITCOIN FOR POLICY MAKERS

Consumers' Researchhas published a new white paper on blockchain technology. The paper, released today, sets out to identify the opportunities presented by the technology, the challenges present today and potential solutions to those concerns.

A small group of insiders gathered in the New Hampshire hills in July with the goal of producing a comprehensive assessment of where bitcoin is, where it may go, and what might prevent it from getting there.

The idea moreover was to write a paper that would be broad enough to appeal to both policy makers and regulators, the business community, the bitcoin community, and even the general public.

THE PROMISE OF BITCOIN AND THE BLOCKCHAIN

At the core of Bitcoin is the ability to send money faster around the globe, improve property rights, and enable people who have never met to fully trust one another. This paper identifies and explains the opportunities presented by blockchain technologies, the challenges faced by those opportunities, and potential ways to address those challenges.

Location

Omni Mt. Washington

As grand as the history behind it, the Omni Mount Washington Resort, located in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, is gracious in ambiance and generous in amenities. A favorite New England retreat of presidents, poets and celebrities, the hotel delights every sense with enchanting music, refined dining and luxurious décor. The resort boasts a classic Donald Ross-designed golf course, award-winning Alpine and Nordic ski center, luxurious signature spa, decadent dining facilities and nine high-flying zip-lines. After exploring, unwind in luxurious guest room accommodations. A grand masterpiece of Spanish Renaissance architecture, the resort was a two-year labor of love for 250 master craftsmen. Conceived by industrialist Joseph Stickney, this National Historic Landmark opened in 1902 and has been attracting generations of families ever since.